Hanging candle structure

ABSTRACT

A hanging candle including a candle body having a central wick therein which is formed with a heat impervious core material and an outer covering of suitable wicking material. The core of the wick extends upwardly beyond the wicking material and is formed into a loop, hook or other suitable means by which the candle may be suspended. The wick also extends from the bottom of the candle body for attachment to a drip catching support plate.

United States Patent 1191 Gray Nov. 4, 1975 [54] HANGING CANDLESTRUCTURE 2,829,511 4/1958 Oesterle et a1 431/325 Inventor: y M. y 2102N. 26th Place, 3,105,373 10/1963 pevlllemure et a1. 431/288 Phoenix,Ariz. 85008 Primary Examiner-Carroll B. Dorlty, Jr. [22] F'led: May 1974Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Herbert E. Haynes, Jr. [21] Appl. No.: 472,606

[57] ABSTRACT 2% 5 431/292; 431/ gf gg gig A hanging candle including acandle body having a 292 6 central wick therein which is formed with aheat im- 1 0 are 1 pervious core material and an outer covering ofsuitable wicking material. The core of the wick extends upwardly beyondthe wicking material and is formed [56] References Clted into a loop,hook or other suitable means by which the UNITED STATES PATENTS candlemay be suspended. The wick also extends from 1,255,310 2/1918 Henderson24/129 B the bottom of the candle body for attachment to a 2,291,0677/1942 Atkins 431/325 drip catching supportplate. 2,291,072 7/1942 Dahle431/325 2,302,146 1 1/1942 Root et a1. 431/325 4 Claims, 4 DrawingFigures US. Patent Nov. 4, 1975 HANGING CANDLE STRUCTURE BACKGROUND OFTHE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates tocandles and more particularly to a hanging candle structure and wicktherefor.

2. Description of the Prior Art In most instances, candles are mountedin special holders and placed on tables, book cases, special pedestal,or other suitable supporting furniture. Thus, candles are not generallyemployed in areas which lack suitable supporting furniture and are aconstant concern to the user due to the inherent danger of tipping. Thisdanger of tipping also determines, to a great extent, the physical sizeof a candle, that is, a tall candle has a greater tendency to tip overthan a small candle. For this reason, all relatively tall candles haveproportionately large diameters to provide a measure of stability.

Candles have been placed in various types of hanging structures such asa pot shaped candle supporting base which is suspended by several ropesor chains. This type of structure is normally decorative in itself withthe candle mounted therein being of secondary decorative value and apoor source of light due to its being partially obstructed by the baseand suspending ropes or chains.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, ahanging candle structure and wick therefor are disclosed as including acandle body in which a central wick is employed as means for suspendingthe candle body and for attachment thereof to a drip catching supportplate. The wick is of special construction and includes a core of heatimpervious material and an outer covering of a suitable wickingmaterial. The core of the wick pro trudes from the top of the wickingmaterial and is formed with means thereon for hanging the candlestructure from a suitable overhead structure. The wick also protrudesfrom the bottom of the candle body for attachment to the support plate.The support plate is preferably a dish shaped structure upon which thebase of the candle body is carried and with means thereon for receivingand gripping the downward protruding portion of the wick.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a newand improved' candle wick.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and usefulcandle wick by which a candle body may be suspendingly mounted.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and usefulhanging candle structure.

The foregoing and other objects of the present invention as well as theinvention itself may be more fully understood from the followingdescription when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a perspective view of thehanging candle structure of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the structure of the presentinvention illustrating the various features thereof.

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the structure of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2wherein the hanging candle structure of the present invention isindicated generally by the reference numeral 10. The hanging candlestructure 10 includes a candle body 12, a central wick l4, and a dripcatching support plate 16 as will now be described in detail.

The candle body 12 may be formed of the usual materials such asparafine, beeswax and the like and may be configured into any desiredsymetrical geometric shape such as a cube or a sphere. Conventionalelongated candle bodies such as the cylindrical candle body 10 shown inthe drawing or others. for example, having square or triangular crosssections (not shown) may be molded or otherwise formed into any desiredlength with any practical cross sectional dimensions. The virtuallyunlimited dimensional variations of candle bodies for use in the candlestructure 10 of the present invention is made possible by two factorswith the first of these factors being that by hanging the candle insteadof the usual surface mounting, the stability problem, i.e., tipping, iseliminated. Thus, candles of increased length are possible without theheretofore necessary proportionate increase in the cross sectionaldimensions. The second factor is that the wick 14 employed in thehanging candle structure 10 is in tension which results in long thincandle bodies resisting the tendency to sag, bow, or otherwise deformwhen in relatively warm sourroundings.

The wick 14 is fabricated with a core 18 of heat impervious materialwhich is defined for use in this description as being impervious to thetemperature of a burning candle, and an outer covering 20 of suitablewicking material. The core 18 may be fabricated of a strand of asbestos,however, it is preferably of metal such as steel, copper or suitablealloys which will withstand the temperatures of combustion. Somesynthetic materials may also be employed for the core 18, such as afluorinated hydrocarbon as typified by the product marketed under thetrade name Teflon. In any event, the core material must be nonflammable,have a high enough melting point to withstand the temperatures ofcombustion and have adequate structural strength and dimensionalstability to support the candle body 12 and the support plate 16. Theouter covering 20 of the wick 14 may be fabricated of any suitablematerial such as a woven cotton. e

The wick l4 as described above may be prewaxed and centrally located inthe candle body 12 in accordance with procedures and techniques wellknown in the industry. The outer cover 20, or combustible portion, ofthe wick 14 extends above the top surface 22 of the candle body 12arelatively short distance as is common, and the core 18 protrudesupwardly therefrom to provide means by which the candle structure may besuspended.

The extending upper end of the core 18 may be formed into a loop 24, asshown in FIG. 1, or a hook 26 as shown in FIG. 2, or any other suitablemeans by which the hanging candle structure 10 may be attached to anoverhead structure.

The wick 14 extends longitudinally within the candle body 12 from thetop surface 22 to the bottom surface 28 at which the outer coveringterminates. The core 18 continues below the termination of the covering20 to form a tail portion 30 for attachment to the drip catching supportplate 16.

The drip catching support plate 16 is preferrably a dish shapedstructure having an upper surface 32 upon which the base or bottomsurface 28 of the candle body 12 is carried. An aperture 34 is formedthrough the plate 16 centrally thereof for receiving the tail 30 of thewick core 18. The plate 16 is provided with a pair of tabs 36 which arediametrically opposed with respect to the central aperture 34, andangularly depend from the bottom surface 38 of the plate 16. The tail 30of the wick core 18 thus extends through the aperture 34 and is wrappedaround the tabs 36 as seen best in FIG. 3 so as to secure the plate 16to the candle body 12. The plate 16 may be fabricated of any suitablematerial such as plastic, wood, metal, and the like, and may have thetabs 36 formed integral therewith, as shown, or suitably affixed theretowith a suitable adhesive or welding as necessitated by the particularmaterial of which the plate is made.

As hereinbefore noted, the plate 16 is designed to catch any candledripping and therefore is illustrated in the drawing as having adiameter somewhat larger than the cross sectional dimensions of thecandle body 12, that is, the plate extends laterally andcircumferentially of the periphery of the candle body. It should benoted that although this drip catching feature is preferred, it wouldnot be necessary if a relatively high temperature wax were employed informing the candle body into what is sometimes referred to as a driplesscandle.

Another function of the plate 16 is to prevent the candle body 12 fromaxially sliding downwardly along the wick 14. This axial sliding wouldmost likely occur, if it were not for the plate 16, at a time when thecandle is nearly burned down, for at this time the candles flame couldproduce sufficient heat to melt the wax adjacent to the wick 14 andcause the wick to loosen in the candle body.

FIG. 4 illustrates a modified form of a drip plate 40 which isillustrated as being more ideally suited for reuse and better adapted tobe aesthetically configured than the previously described plate 16.

As shown, the plate 40 is shown as having a dish shaped upper surface 42with a thickened body portion 44, a bottom surface 46, and an endlessside wall 48. The side wall 48 can be configured into various shapes orcan be provided with surface ornamentation as desired. The body portion44 has a downwardly opening cavity 50 formed therein which extendsupwardly from the bottom surface 46 of the plate 40 part way toward thetop or upper surface 42. An aperture 52 is centrally formed in the plate40 and is positioned to communicate between'the uppper surface 42 andthe cavity 50. A retainer block 54 is demountably positioned in thecavity 50 such as with a screw 56.

To connect the plate 40 to the candle body 12, the tail 30 of the wickcore 18, or for that matter, the entire wick 14 is passed downwardlythrough the aperture 52 into the cavity 50 so that by inserting andfixing the retaining block 54 in the cavity, the wick core tail 30 willbe firmly held in gripped engagement between the inner surfaces of thecavity and the retainer block.

While the principles of the invention have now been made clear in anillustrated embodiment, there will be immediately obvious to thoseskilled in the art, many modifications of structure, arrangements,proportions, the elements, materials, and components used in thepractice of the invention, and otherwise, which are particularly adaptedfor specific environments and operation requirements without departingfrom those principles. The appended claims are therefore intended tocover and embrace any such modifications within the limits only of thetrue spirit and scope of the invention.

What I claim is:

l. A hanging candle structure comprising:

a. a candle body;

b. a wick formed with an outer covering of wicking material and a coreof material which is impervious to the heat produced by combustion ofsaid candle body, said wick centrally located in said candle body andhaving the core thereof extending upwardly from the outer covering ofwicking material so that said candle body is suspendingly mountable bymeans of the core of said wick;

c. a tail depending from the bottom of said candle body, said tailformed by the core of said wick which extends downwardly from saidcandle body;

(I. a drip catching support plate in engagement with the bottom of saidcandle body, said support plate extending laterally circumferentiallybeyond the periphery of said candle body for catching candle drippingsproduced by combustion of said candle body; and

e. means on said drip catching support plate for gripping said tail foraffixing said support plate to said candle body.

2. A hanging candle structure as claimed in claim 1 further comprisingmeans on the upper end of the core of said wick for attachment thereofto an overhead structure.

3. A hanging candle structure as claimed in claim 1 wherein said meansfor gripping said tail comprises:

a. said support plate having a central aperture formed therethrough forreceiving said tail; and

b. a pair'of tabs depending angularly oppositely from the bottom of saidsupport plate and diametrically opposed with respect to the apertureformed in said support plate, said pair of tabs adapted to have saidtail grippingly wrapped therearound.

4. A hanging candle structure as claimed in claim 1 wherein said meansfor gripping said tail comprises:

a. said support plate having a bottom opening cavity formed thereinwhich extends from the bottom of said support plate part way toward thetop thereof;

b. said support plate having a central aperture formed therein whichcommunicates between the top surface and the cavity thereof, theaperture adapted to receive said tail therein to position a portion ofsaid tail within the cavity of said support plate; and

c. a retainer block mountable within said cavity for grippingly affixingsaid tail therein.

1. A hanging candle structure comprising: a. a candle body; b. a wickformed with an outer covering of wicking material and a core of materialwhich is impervious to the heat produced by combustion of said candlebody, said wick centrally located in said candle body and having thecore thereof extending upwardly from the outer covering of wickingmaterial so that said candle body is suspendingly mountable by means ofthe core of said wick; c. a tail depending from the bottom of saidcandle body, said tail formed by the core of said wick which extendsdownwardly from said candle body; d. a drip catching support plate inengagement with thE bottom of said candle body, said support plateextending laterally circumferentially beyond the periphery of saidcandle body for catching candle drippings produced by combustion of saidcandle body; and e. means on said drip catching support plate forgripping said tail for affixing said support plate to said candle body.2. A hanging candle structure as claimed in claim 1 further comprisingmeans on the upper end of the core of said wick for attachment thereofto an overhead structure.
 3. A hanging candle structure as claimed inclaim 1 wherein said means for gripping said tail comprises: a. saidsupport plate having a central aperture formed therethrough forreceiving said tail; and b. a pair of tabs depending angularlyoppositely from the bottom of said support plate and diametricallyopposed with respect to the aperture formed in said support plate, saidpair of tabs adapted to have said tail grippingly wrapped therearound.4. A hanging candle structure as claimed in claim 1 wherein said meansfor gripping said tail comprises: a. said support plate having a bottomopening cavity formed therein which extends from the bottom of saidsupport plate part way toward the top thereof; b. said support platehaving a central aperture formed therein which communicates between thetop surface and the cavity thereof, the aperture adapted to receive saidtail therein to position a portion of said tail within the cavity ofsaid support plate; and c. a retainer block mountable within said cavityfor grippingly affixing said tail therein.